Northwest Fishing Reports

I head into the salt about 10 times for each river excursion, so I always opt for a prop on my boat. Just take it easy and slow down in the river, especially if you don't know it well. Jets are nice for shallow rivers ...but for most everything else a prop is more efficient and quieter.

I've watched Largemouths "herd" their babies in the shallows, working in teams to corral them in to a corner, then gobble'em up . These fish are often both well-fed and spooky, so a stealthy approach and subtle presentation is important. A floating Rapala is a good choice, but even better is a soft ...

I've fished Cle Elum several times from shore near the inlet , and taken quite a few nice rainbows on spinning gear, chucking hardware like Rooster Tails, Little Cleos, etc . However, I've had little success while shore fishing the area around Wish-Poosh Campground twice, so it's definitely hit-or-m...

The weedless wedge style prop was a great advancement, but that was 20+ years ago. Infinitely variable speed control and more efficient battery use were a couple of other nice steps forward...but at the end of the day, the old school motors still move the boat around ok and get the job done. Cleanin...

I inherited a whole big mess of 50s-60s era tackle , including a bunch of Mitchell 300 series "coffee grinders" . Some are still in the original box with then manual , etc. , and others are hanging on vintage spinning rods . I also have a couple of Johnson spincasters in MINT condition , in their bo...

I'll second the "peace and quiet" of an electric , having fished for many years with small gas kickers prior to the advent of these relatively inexpensive, fairly powerful electrics. It's nice to hear the birdies singing, the fish rising .... and NOT listen to a motor chugging away. I don't miss lug...

Back when my kids were still little shorties, I used to take them "shark" fishing out near the USS Lincoln in Everett all the time. Those kids had an absolute BLAST reeling in those "sharks" all day , just sink a herring down and wait a minute or two, as close to guaranteed action as a little fisher...

I like an electric for smaller waters, especially since many of the waters I fish have a ban on using gas motors. A 55# Kota with a good group 27 will muscle a 16' aluminum boat around all day , on the lake or river , easily making 3mph if needed. This is twice as fast as I generally troll on freshw...

Columbia Basin is always windy in the spring, just as us westside boys typically battle the damp early season drizzlies. Better get used to it , because it's part of the deal. Me personally, I'll take rain showers and fog on an otherwise glass calm lake , as neither one of those conditions make me d...

Who hasn't spent hours on the water, contemplating lure colors while waiting for a strike ? I certainly have. I've always been more concerned with the "flash" factor than the actual color , especially when things are happening on or near the surface where there is ample light available to be reflect...

The traditional way to alert and signal other boats in situations like this is with a horn. Those loud little handheld air horns usually wake people up pretty good..... bigger boats like my 21' Skagit have built-in twin air horns, high/low......and lemme tell you, they WORK ! There wouldn't be a nee...

I've never had much luck for crawdads around here until the water really warms up . We have fun soaking traps during our summer camping excursions, but the size and quantity we catch is nothing compared to what some of those good old boys down south get .

(hops up on recently vacated soap box) Not sure what all the shouting is about, but this incident illustrates perfectly the reason why I avoid any event with the words "opening day" associated with it . You get a high concentration of once-a-year yahoos that have no business being near a boat, a boa...

I'm gonna dodge the crazy crowds and hit up a buddy's private beaver ponds for some native Cutthroat. Two people and a few hundred hungry fish.... that's good math . I have a nice new fly outfit to test out. Those "opening day" crowds can be pretty special. I have a friend with a house that overlook...

I'm going with landlocked Coho as well . In fact, I'm sure of it . There was a popular soft-cover guide book to Washington lakes and rivers sold locally back in the 70s , I forget the name but it had listings by county for each water, which included a species list , and a paragraph about the fishing...

I shore fished a local peat bog near my home in Everett for a couple of hours this evening, hoping to get a peck from an early season crappie or pumpkinseed. Working a worm tipped jig-n-float rig around the just-emerging lily pads produced nothing , and although visibility was good, I saw not one fi...

I've been getting impatient for some good westside crappie / panfish action too, not much happening yet at my usual local honey holes. Gonna head out right now to a shallow pond near my place here in Everett and see what's shakin' , but my guess is that those 70 degree temps the weatherman is talkin...

As others have mentioned, early season Largemouth fishin' can be tough going , even if you have a lot of experience. Of course, every body of water is different, but in general, once the water warms up into the 50s , they really become more aggressive in their feeding . I'm up north in Sno.Co. , and...

I've seen guys poaching at Lenore before , called them in , and had the sheriff show up and give them a warning , in Spanish. They looked like " confused " meat fishermen who didn't " comprende " the closed area and tackle restrictions ...and couldn't read all the big signs saying " CLOSED AREA NO F...

Thanks Lucious, my next trip into Pike country will be in the first week of June , so it sounds like my timing should be about right on the water temps.

I appreciate the info., and as always, will respect the resource.

Bustin